Explainations
by MickBeth4ever
Summary: Mick comes over to Beth's to pick her up for dinner after they catch Tierney Taylor's murderer. Will Mick find out why Josef came to see her, or will he be left in the dark?


This is my view on what happened after Josef left after calling for Dean's extermination. I hope you like it!!! If you do, please let me know!!!

Disclaimer: I don't own it…and if I did, I would have my own channel or station and put new episodes on there.

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Explanations

Beth stepped out of the shower and made her way to the black dress that she had picked out for the night on her bed. Josef had left only a few hours earlier and she and Mick had a date at the Bistro.

Sliding the dress on, she thought for a moment about what she had asked Josef to do. She wondered if he thought any differently of her; not that it mattered. But she still was surprised at how little guilt she was feeling about the fact that she had asked Josef to kill a man, or at least have him be killed. Josef probably didn't do it personally, but more than likely had one of his employees or one of the many vamps he had up his sleeve attend to the problem.

Putting on her makeup, she wondered how Mick would react if he ever found out about what Josef had done, what she had done. She hopped that he would never find out, but knew that if he did, he would understand.

Or at least she hopped he would.

Looking at herself in the mirror, deeming herself presentable, she was ready to go.

She wondered how she could feel guilty about asking Josef to kill someone who would willingly give out damning evidence that would result in a hunt for Mick, Josef, and the rest of the vampire community that she had found herself so deeply connected to? The answer was that she couldn't. At least not very much. She knew that she would be worried if she didn't at least feel a little guilty. But she knew it wouldn't last, it was necessary for Mick and the rest of the vamp community's survival.

She walked away from the mirror and made her way out of her room and into the kitchen. She looked for something to do while she waited for Mick to arrive, but found that there was nothing for her to do.

Because Mick was knocking at the door.

She smiled and walked to the door. "Mick. Impeccable timing as ever."

Mick smiled sweetly at her. She was definitely glad that he had decided to try a relationship. "I try. You ready?" he asked.

Beth nodded. "Yes. Oh, I just need to get my purse and jacket. Come on in," she offered as she ran back into her bedroom for her forgotten belongings.

Mick smiled but then stilled. He took a deep breath and smelled something that he was very curious about. He was very confused and worried about what he smelled, and when Beth came in she said, "Alright, I'm ready to-" before stopping and looking at the look on his face.

"Mick, what's wrong?" she asked, concerned, moving toward him.

When Mick looked at Beth he saw the crystal blue color of his eyes, no longer the blue-grey they usually were. He looked at her for a moment before realizing that he had changed and shook his head and when he looked back at Beth, his eyes were no longer ice-blue.

"Why was Josef here?"

Beth's eyes went wide and she gasped quietly. She hadn't been expecting that question, but forced herself to calm down. Mick would realize something was wrong. But she had to think fast or else he would catch her in a lie and find out why Josef had really been in her apartment.

"Well, you see, what had happened was is that-"

"Did he hurt you? Threaten you?" he asked, moving toward her.

Beth smiled, thankful for the idea he had given her. "No, he didn't hurt me, or threaten me. He called and asked if I was available to talk. Said I was, and he came over."

"Did he scare you?" he asked.

Beth was startled at the question. "No, why?"

She saw Mick take in a deep breath before answering. "Vampires can sense strong emotions. The stronger the emotion, the longer it stays and the more potent the smell. There's a hint of panic in here."

"Really? You can do that?" Beth asked, in awe, her mind taken away from the pressing problem of explain why Josef had been in her apartment.

Mick smiled. "Yeah, it's a handy thing to have around when I'm investigating cases and such."

Beth thought for a moment. "So, when I was kidnapped…?"

"Even after two days I could still smell how terrified you were."

Beth smiled slightly, still amazed that he had so many different abilities.

"So, Josef?"

Beth internally sighed. He wouldn't let it go. Wonderful.

"He came over and we just talked for a little while. He didn't stay long. He made me see sense. Buzz Wire isn't the place for me anymore. After Mo…well, there isn't anything even in the least respectable about it. Besides," she said, giving him a look. "It's dangerous for you. If you're seen with me, and I'm still very in the public eye, if something were to happen…" She paused. "It would be devastating. And I don't want to lose you, or be the reason for the hunt that would occur to find you and all the other vampires."

Mick shook his head. "But you don't have to quit, Beth. Really, it'll be fine. Don't worry about it."

Beth shook her head in response. "No, Mick. I've made up my mind; I've already called and told them that I can't work anymore. It's settled."

Mick closed his eyes and turned away. Beth bit her lip, hoping that he would let this go. She hadn't been lying when she told him that she quit. She had called only minutes after Josef had left and informed her new boss that she could not work for him any longer. But the longer that Mick stayed quiet the more nervous she grew. She remembered him saying that he could smell any strong emotions and she tried to suppress her nerves.

When he turned around, he turned slowly, and looked into Beth's eyes. Her stomach dropped and she knew that he knew she wasn't telling the entire truth. He knew her too well. Dang it.

"Beth."

She winced. She started to say something but stopped. How could she tell him? She looked down and closed her eyes, trying to find the right words to tell him what she had done.

"Please, don't make me tell you," she pleaded quietly. She opened her eyes and saw something there that made her heart ache. She saw betrayal.

Mick looked in Beth's eyes and suddenly looked away and took out his phone.

"Josef. Come to Beth's. Quickly."

He hung up and without looking at Beth, turned around.

She knew he was probably thinking something that wasn't true, but didn't have the guts to call him back and put him straight. She didn't have to wait long for Josef to arrive. It hadn't taken him long to get there after Beth had called him, so she knew she would only be in torture for a few minutes.

He didn't knock, but walked right in and looked around, obviously concerned that something had happened. So when he saw Beth and Mick alive and unharmed, he became confused and irritated. Trying to forget the last time that he was there, only a few hours before.

"What was so important that you had to-"

"Why were you here, Josef?"

Josef saw the look in Mick's now ice-blue eyes and knew that Mick wanted to at least put a stake through his heart if nothing else. He had a feeling why he would act that way, but decided to try the non-abrasive route.

"Why do you think I was here, Mick?" he asked, not even putting sarcasm in his voice. It was a true question, one that he wanted Mick to answer before he said another word.

The look in Mick's eyes said it all. But he wanted to hear it from the younger vampire that was going to accuse him. Besides, if he was in Mick's shoes he could understand his anger, it didn't look good – he had come to her home, and he came _alone_, and Beth didn't want to tell him what happened. Yup, he'd be as angry as Mick was right now. "You know exactly what I think, Josef. Did you?" he asked, eyes filled with carefully controlled rage.

Josef decided to not test that control, for he knew what Mick was capable of when it came to Beth. It wouldn't be pretty. "No, I did not," he answered, sounding slightly offended to his own ears.

Shock showed in the younger vamp's eyes as he backed down. "You didn't?" he asked again for confirmation.

"No," he said with conviction. He knew that Mick thought that he had come here with the intention of "having relations" with Beth, but he wouldn't even give it another thought. She was Mick's, and vampires didn't mess with other vampire's stuff, it was just rude. And no one would accuse Josef Kostan of not having the proper vamp etiquette.

He saw the words have the desired effect. Mick took a deep breath and began to relax. His eyes turning from the crystal blue back to their original blue-grey hue. Josef turned to Beth when Mick's head was turned, trying to compose himself again.

Beth gave him a quick, confused look, but Josef shook his head. He had a concerned look of his own and Beth knew why. She nodded and shrugged her shoulders, letting him know that she had no idea how to tell him what they had talked about earlier. Josef shook his head and she got the message: he would take care of it.

When Mick turned around, Beth and Josef broke eye contact and Josef's eyes went to the vampire as Beth's went to the floor.

"Then why were you here?" he asked the older vampire.

Josef locked eyes with Mick and said, "You don't want to know, Mick. Just put it out of your mind, and let it go."

Anger flashed in Mick's eyes. "I'm not going to let it go, Josef. I want to know why you were here, at Beth's house."

Making up his mind Josef said bluntly. "She called me."

Mick's eyes filled with shock and he looked to Beth. "What? I thought you said-" he paused. "Why?"

Beth looked up, anxious, but didn't say anything. He saw her eyes pleading with him and saw the love for him. Mick was confused, but didn't ask again.

"Mick, sit down," Josef told his friend.

Mick blinked stupidly at him and didn't move until after Josef closed the apartment door and started to move toward the couch. He motioned for Beth to follow. She sat down in her armchair as Mick sat on the sofa and Josef stood in front of him.

"You remember that car that hit you?" When Mick nodded, he continued. "There was someone taking pictures."

It took only seconds for Mick to realize what that meant. "Oh, no."

"Yeah, oh, no," Josef repeated, starting to pace. "Beth called me over to show me the photos."

"How did you get them, Beth?" Mick asked her.

Beth swallowed hard before answering. "Dean Foster sent them to me in an email. Then he called me and threatened me with them. He wanted to be the first person that Buzz Wire went to for photographs, or else he'd hand over the pictures."

Mick was shocked for a moment before his eyes turned to crystal once more. "I'm going to kill him."

"No need, it's taken care of."

That snapped Mick out of the rage that he had put himself in. His eyes turned back and his fangs retracted as he looked at his best friend. "What do you mean 'it's taken care of'?"

"That's just what I mean, Mick."

He thought for a moment on what his friend's statement meant for the paparazzo. "You had him killed."

Josef nodded. "Yes, I did. I made the call as soon as I left."

"So, Beth just called you to show you the pictures," he said, almost relieved. But when he saw the look in his friend's eyes, he knew there was something more. When he threw him a questioning look, he responded with a look of his own, one that said, "What do you think?"

It took him a moment to put the pieces together: Dean giving Beth the photos, Beth calling Josef, Josef coming over, and Josef calling in for the man's death just after he left. When his mind realized what he could have meant by his look, he looked over at Beth.

She wasn't looking at him, but rather at the floor. When she felt his eyes on her, she looked up and the look in her eyes gave her the answer he needed. She had asked Josef to come over so that she could ask him to take care of the situation. She had asked Josef to kill the man so that his secret would be kept safe.

When he looked closer at Beth, he didn't see the consuming guilt that he thought he would, but he saw apprehension lined with only a hint of guilt. She didn't feel especially guilty about it because if she hadn't told Josef, his life, and the life of every vampire in the world would be in danger. He felt honored that Beth would do something like that for him. He knew what it must have cost her to call Josef, with only the knowledge that she was saving him by doing so.

With ever passing second he felt the fear of his rejection or disappointment increase from her. Snapping himself out of his thoughts, he stood and walked over to Beth. He offered her a hand, which she took, and helped her stand up. Standing so close to her, it allowed him to smell her, her anxiety, her love, and her fear. He could hear her heartbeat and breathing increasing rapidly.

He smiled slightly and leaned down to capture her lips with his. He felt the tension in her body, but as he deepened the kiss, she began to relax, realizing that he wasn't angry or disappointed in her; he was grateful. They both heard a cough, and remembering where they were, broke apart. Beth smiled at Mick, love and relief shining in her eyes.

Mick smiled back, and Josef decided to speak up.

"Well, you're taking it better than I expected."

Both Mick and Beth turned. "What do you mean?" Mick asked.

"Well, both of you really," he explained. "You for not freaking out when I told you and you realized that it was Beth's idea," he told Mick. "And you for not feeling so guilty. I was afraid that you'd regret your decision," he said to Beth.

Beth shook her head. "I feel a little bit guilty, but not as much as I thought. I couldn't let Dean use those photos…" she said, trailing off.

The two men knew what she meant, and Mick wrapped her in his arms.

"You didn't have to do that, you know," he told her quietly.

Beth nodded against his chest. "Yes, I did. I couldn't let him expose you…I couldn't lose you."

Mick sighed and ran his hand through her hair, trying to calm her now racing heart. He looked at Josef, who looked down for a moment before looking back up. Mick smiled slightly at his friend who nodded, giving him a small smile of his own. He looked from Beth to Mick, raised his eyebrows and opened his mouth enough for Mick to see his fangs.

Mick had to stop himself from yelling at Josef, but instead gave him a glare before turning his attention back to Beth.

"What's wrong?"

Mick looked down and Beth pulled away. "Nothing, don't worry about it," he told her.

Beth turned to look at Josef who's eyes had turned crystal. She raised her eyebrow in question and he quickly changed back. She looked back and forth between the two vamps, knowing something was off.

Beth saw Mick's ear twitch, and he looked toward Josef. When she looked, she barely saw Josef's lips moving before he stopped talking and she wasn't sure if she had actually seen them move at all. When she looked at Mick he looked at her, giving her a smile, before turning to Josef. He moved forward, out of Beth's range of eyesight of his face. Josef had a smile on his face that said Mick was telling him something that was entertaining him.

"Alright! What's going on?"

When Josef snapped his eyes toward her, he had a glint if humor in his eyes. Mick turned around with a similar look, but with a warm smile accompanying it.

"Nothing, why?"

"Because you two are talking and I can't hear you. It's freaking me out!" she said, obviously annoyed at being left in the dark.

Mick smirked and turned back to Josef, who gave him a "If you want to" look. Mick turned back around and smiled. "Vampires can speak below audible human hearing levels. That's why you can't hear us."

"No fair! That means you were talking about me! What were you guys talking about?" she asked, stepping closer to the pair of vampires.

"Nothing you need to worry about, Beth," Mick said, but as soon as he said it, he knew he was in trouble.

"I'll decided what I need and don't need to worry about, Mick St. John," she said, giving him a look and placing her hands on her hips. "What's going on that you're not telling me?"

Josef suddenly morphed his features and Beth was unexpectedly staring into the eyes of a very amused, and very close, four hundred year old vampire. She felt her heart rate increase quickly with surprise, but not fear. "I basically told him that he should turn you and get it over with."

Beth blinked, surprised. "You what?"

"Josef…"

"Don't worry, Mick, I won't hurt a hair on her pretty little head," Josef informed the territorial vampire behind him.

"Why would you tell him to turn me? You know he won't," she told the still very close, and invading her personal space, vampire.

"That's why I do it. It's like asking him if he wants a drink when he come over to my place, he never says yes, but it's fun to annoy him."

Beth gave him a confused look as her heart rate returned to normal. "What do you mean, when you offer him a drink he says no?"

"Josef."

"Calm down, Mick. The lady has a question and I'm going to answer it," he answered the vamp, never taking his eyes off hers. "Vampires have to get their blood from somewhere, don't they?" he asked the confused reporter.

"Yes…but what does that have to do with-"

"I like to get it directly from the source," he said, looking at her neck for emphasis.

Beth was proud to say that she wasn't nervous at all as Josef taunted her. "Ah, well, that's something I didn't know," she said, with a smile on her face. But as Josef continued to stare at her neck, she began to squirm under his gaze. "But why doesn't Mick take the proffered drink?" she asked.

She heard Mick sigh and sit down, almost in defeat. She couldn't see him, of course, because Josef still had her entire line of vision blocked with his face.

"Why don't you ask him?" he said, turning to allow Beth to look at Mick.

He was sitting down with a hand going through his hair and over his face. Almost as if he knew he couldn't get out of the questioning and didn't like it one bit.

"Mick?" she asked, sitting next to him.

Mick didn't look at her for a while. It wasn't until Josef cleared his throat that Mick looked up from the carpet. "It's not my cup of tea."

Beth heard Josef scoff, but kept her eyes on Mick. She thought for a moment before talking. "But, why not? I thought that vampires would like the idea of feeding off a person. You don't, I realize that, but why? Is it just personal taste?" she asked, looking at Josef.

Josef's features shifted back to human again as he sat down across from them. "Every vampire has the instinct to feed from a human. But, because of blood donors and the packaged blood, we don't need to hunt for the blood. However, every vampire needs to feed from humans at different times, during different situations. If a vamp looses too much blood, the only thing that will save the vamp is blood straight from the veins of a human. Also, if a vamp goes too long without feeding from a human, after so many years, the vamp won't be able to control himself and will end up feeding anyways. Mick, here, used to like feeing from humans, but doesn't anymore. He might like to torture himself with his store bought, disgusting, blood, but he's doing just that, torturing himself."

"But why?" she asked, not bothering to look at Mick, knowing that he wouldn't answer.

Josef opened his mouth but was stopped by Mick. "Josef, don't."

Josef gave him a look and said, "She wants to know, Mick."

Mick sighed and opened his eyes. Beth tried to catch his stare, but wasn't successful. He just looked at Josef. But suddenly he turned and looked at her and suddenly it all made sense.

"It was me, wasn't it?" she asked breathless. "It all makes sense. I was kidnapped and you saved me, you thought it was your fault, so you decided to torture yourself with the morgue blood, stop feeding from humans, and follow me throughout the years." She swallowed hard. "Why torment yourself like this? It wasn't your fault! It was Coralline's and that's it! It wasn't your fault!"

Mick closed his eyes once again and sighed. "But it was. She took you to try and win me back, Beth."

The blond reporter shook her head, scooting closer to him. "No, Mick, it wasn't. Yes, that may have been her reasoning, but you saved me, Mick. _You saved me_," she said with a smile.

"You have a very big influence on him, whether you, or he, likes it or not," Josef informed her.

She heard a low growl coming from Mick. And even though he had his eyes closed, she knew he was very irritated at Josef for starting this whole area of discussion.

After a few moments Beth saw an irritated look in Josef's eyes. "Look, Mick, if you guys are going to be involved, you need to talk," Josef said, looking from Mick to Beth. "The topic of turning will come up sooner or later, and Beth should be able to say confidently either yes or no. If she doesn't know anything about being a vampire, how can she say either answer with confidence?"

Beth blinked in surprise. That's not what she had just been talking about. What was going on? Why the sudden change in topic? But Mick's next statement told her that they had been talking quietly again.

"You didn't have to say that so loud, Josef."

Josef stood, irritation evident in his posture. "Yes, I did, Mick. This pretty little lady just saved your life. She did something for you that you had done for her many times. She looked out for you. She cares about you, Mick, and even if you don't want to admit it aloud, you care about her. And since you two are officially involved, you have to start talking. There's only so many things that you can ask Beth that you don't know the answer to."

"Josef," Beth interrupted him. When he turned to her, she told him silently that she had something to say and gave him a grateful smile. He bowed her head toward her, allowing her the floor.

"Mick? Listen to me, and I want you to look at me when I say this." Only when he looked up did she continue. "Josef's right. I do care about you. If I didn't we wouldn't be going out and I wouldn't have kissed you. And I definitely wouldn't have had Josef over a few hours ago. I know that I can't hope to make a decision now of whether or not I want to be turned. Number one, I don't know where you and I stand, or where we'll stand in a few years. If we end up staying together and falling in love, I want the option to stay with you forever. But I can't make that decision unless I am told about the world that I would join. I don't want there to be any surprises when I get turned." She saw movement out of the corner of her eye and looked to see Josef sporting a surprised smile and a raised eyebrow. She smiled and turned back to Mick. "Look, I know you don't like the idea. We don't have to worry about it for now, alright? Let's just focus on figuring out where we stand, and we can worry about future turnings later, ok?" she asked with a pleading look.

Mick looked into her eyes, looking for anything to tell him that she meant what she said. He didn't have to look far to find the determination in her eyes, but he studied her face more, trying to find something that said that she didn't really want this. But he found nothing.

He pulled her close and smiled against her neck. "Ok."

He felt her heart jump and joy radiate from her. "Thank you," she said softly.

Mick pulled away and looked at Josef after sharing a smile with Beth.

"So, everything alright now?" Josef asked.

Beth looked at Mick and nodded. "Yes, everything's alright now."

"You guys are going to talk?"

Beth gave Mick a questioning glace and he said, "Yes."

Beth smiled. She looked at Josef who had an mischievous smile on his face, backing up toward the door. "That's good. Now I think the first thing you should discuss," he said, making it to the door. "Is sex."

Josef ran out the door before Mick could throw something at him.

Beth smiled, looking up from her seated spot on the couch, at a now irritated, and standing, Mick. She knew Mick didn't want to discuss anything right now, so she decided that the conversation could occur after dinner.

"Mick?"

When Mick turned back around, he gave her a look.

"You ready to go watch me eat?" she asked.

Mick looked shocked for a minute before he smiled. "Sure."

Beth smiled back at him and allowed him to lead the way out of her apartment. She closed the door behind them and locked it. Turning to Mick, she smiled, took his hand, and walked down to his car for another meal where, once again, she would eat, and Mick would watch and drink.

She was grateful for Josef's interference. Without it, she feared that Mick wouldn't come around for a long time. But now, she had the feeling that they would be doing more talking and she would be able to have questions answered.

As they got into the car, Beth gave Mick a smile as he turned on the car and headed to the Bistro. Maybe things would be able to work out after all.

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I hope you liked this little one shot. If you did, let me know!!! I'd really appreciate knowing what you thought!!!


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